we will remain
by winteredspark
Summary: /"I don't know." She hates those words, because no matter how many times she tells herself it's going to be okay, she still doesn't know if Mason will ever be back...and that ache is worse than anything before it./ Or, after Wizard of the Year.


**.:we will remain:.**

**Brief Jalex one-shot following the end of Wizard of the Year. I just felt like there was something huge missing there, so this is my contribution. Not that great, but maybe you all will enjoy it :)**

**.:::.**

She tells herself it means nothing.

_Of course it means nothing_. Alex turns her head to the side and rests her cheek on her curved arms. The moon is shining especially bright tonight, and she can't look away.

* * *

><p><em>"Alex, why did you -" Mason begins, then cuts himself off. "I wonder why I even bother to ask." He waits for her to seat herself on his lap before reaching for a handful of popcorn. <em>

_Alex smiles, "You missed our movie night last night, so I figured you could make it up to me tonight." She pats his nose pointedly, then snuggles in closer._

_"There's no TV out here," Mason states, kissing the top of her head. She smells like jasmine, and strawberries; so girly, unlike her personality most of the time. _

_"I didn't say we were watching a movie. Stop trying to act smart like Justin." Alex shoves a handful of popcorn into her mouth and begins to chew obnoxiously, but he knows better than to correct her. _

_"What are we doing, my little princess?"_

_She glares at him, "Don't call me that, Mason." Then, turning her face towards the skies, she breathes in contentedly. "Let's..just...watch the stars today, okay?" _

_Mason nearly chuckles, "That's the girliest thing you've ever suggested." _

_She punches his arm, "Shut up, you're going to -" _

_Alex cuts off and inhales as a shooting star races across the sky, "Make a wish, Mason, quick." _

_He nuzzles into her soft hair and mumbles, "I wish that I can hold you like this forever." _

_She turns to look at him, "You're not supposed to tell anyone your wish. Now it won't come true." She purses her lips at the thought._

_"Are you going to tell me yours?" he asks her, threading his fingers through hers. _

_Alex's eyes sparkle brightly for a second, then she shakes her head. _

_"Wouldn't want to break the magic, now would we?" _

_He begins to reply, but her lips cut him off, soft, molding gently against his own. He leans closer, and they lose themselves in the joy of just being with each other._

* * *

><p>"Doesn't mean a thing," Alex croaks.<p>

And that's when she hears it: the ripple of howls racing through the skies. The moon trembles at the noise, and she knows that it's him. It's Mason, crying out for all the world to hear.

Her body shudders, and a tear slips down her cheek.

Mason will never know she cried for him - because Alex Russo isn't weak like that, duh - but right now he's gone, and she needs to have a moment to herself. Because he's been a part of her life for as long as she can remember, and now he's gone, and she's alone.

And it _hurts_, damn it.

"Alex."

The one voice she _really_ doesn't want to hear right now.

"So you think you can just waltz over here and talk to me?" she asks her brother, voice tight. Her face is still resting on her arms, so she can't see the outline of Justin's shape, but she knows it's him.

She knows his voice all too well.

"Can we not make this a soap opera?" he asks.

She sniffs, feeling pathetic.

"Why did you say all those things in your hollogram video, Justin? I understand that you wanted to win, but couldn't you just be happy for me for _once_?"

"Am I not allowed to want to win, Alex?" He crosses his arms, and she hears his nostrils flare agitatedly.

"Yeah," Alex snaps, finally looking up at him, "but according to you, all I ever do is destroy the wizard world, so I don't seem to understand why you couldn't be happy I did something _right_ for once." Her fingers dig into her legs, hard. "Besides, everyone knows that you'll win an award eventually. So quit this pathetic act and be as much of a man as you can."

Justin laughs, bitterly, "I thought you had a different mentality, but you think just like the rest of the family."

Alex shakes her head, silently questioning what he means. She knows he'll pick up on her body language; he's just that good, and just that much of a perfectionist.

He sinks down to sit on the chair next to her, the lines of his face hard. She's used to seeing him open, joking, not like this. She doesn't like this side of him.

"I used to think that I had an award in the bag," Justin admits, running a hand through his hair to straighten it, "but now...now I'm not so sure. Because ever time I get close, you come along and ruin it."

Alex rolls her eyes, and sits up, "It's not about me, Justin, okay? If you want to win an award, then stop worrying that I'll _steal_ it from you, and start working on your own character!"

His eye twitches; she's got him really mad now. But that's how it's been lately. All Alex can seem to do is set her brother off, whether she means to or not. Truthfully, she's getting quite sick of it; why can't they just try and get along?

"You're hardly one to judge character," Justin snaps at last.

_Ouch_. That one hurts.

Another one of Mason's howls echoes across the skies, and Alex turns her head until she's gazing right at the moon again.

"You miss him," Justin says.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." She knots her hands together, and is surprised when she feels him tugging one hand into his, smoothing her skin out with his thumb.

"You could have taken him back." Justin doesn't try to move her from the position she's in, only stroking her hand, and for that Alex is grateful. She's not sure whether to be grateful for his words or infuriated.

The moon shines on, and his howls echo in her ears. She blinks once, twice, and her vision becomes misted.

"No," Alex says at last, "I couldn't have. We've been on rocky ground for months, and I'm tired of stepping on eggshells."

Justin nods, "Is he coming back, one day?"

More silence, yawning ever on. She finds herself trembling.

"I don't know."

Those horrible words she has to speak. She detests them, because it means that she can't be in control of the situation. It means that there's a chance Mason will never return, and she'll have to move on.

"Look," Alex mutters, "can we stop treating this like a life or death situation? I just want to stop." Stop what, she can't specify, but silence sounds like an enticing option.

Crackling noises, and Justin plops something on the table in between the two chairs.

"I thought you might be hungry," he says, and Alex turns to see a bowl of popcorn sitting there, in the same bowl she put it in the night she and Mason watched the stars.

There's a dull ache, and she's smiling.

"I bet I can eat more than you can," Alex dares him.

Justin laughs, and he's still holding her hand. Right now, she doesn't want him to let go, because she doesn't know if she'll be able to hold herself together quite yet.

"You're on, Alex."

"Alright, ready? 1...2..."

And she's reaching for the bowl before she yells start, because it's always been in her nature to cheat. Justin expects it, but he still stutters in false disbelief. Then they're shoving popcorn into their mouths, flinging it at each other, and she's laughing.

Maybe she'll forgive Justin, because she's just too lazy to keep up a grudge, and he's giving her hand a nice massage. So maybe she'll forgive him, but he just might have to hold her tonight, because she doesn't think she can let go of him without falling apart.

Because no matter how many times she tells herself it's going to be okay, she still doesn't know if Mason will ever be back -

- and that ache is worse than anything before it.


End file.
